Panthers ‘want Bitz’ too

Newly acquired forward notched best game of career against Florida last season

March 4, 2010|By Harvey Fialkov, Sun Sentinel

CORAL SPRINGS Newly acquired right wing Byron Bitz's greatest memory of his fledgling NHL career came last year when he notched his only multiple-goal game against the Panthers in a 6-1 victory by the Bruins and the TD Banknorth Garden faithful began chanting, ‘We want Bitz,' with under a minute to play.

"All of a sudden the chants started,'' Bitz happily recalled Thursday after participating in his first practice with the Panthers since being acquired from the Bruins Wednesday along with minor league winger Craig Weller for veteran defenseman Dennis Seidenberg.

"No one could make it out but it got louder and louder. Everyone on the bench was like, ‘It's awesome.' They were loving it and the coach threw me out there to get the third one. It was definitely a memorable experience.''

Now Bitz, 25, who has eight goals and eight assists in 80 career games, hopes to make new memories with the Panthers as a steady contributor on the third or fourth line. The 6-foot-5, 215-pounder says he's a grinder known for being physical.

"He's an identity player and we don't have enough identity players for me through the depth of our lineup … who are going to make guys pay a price for being on the ice against them to beat us,'' Panthers coach Pete DeBoer said.

Bitz last heard chants for him during his four-year Cornell career.

"I saw a couple of T-shirts, ‘We want Bitz,' around the Garden, but that was definitely a highlight,'' Bitz said. "Last year [in Boston] we were on a roll, so you've got to rebuild, retool and like the Bruins turned the corner, hopefully we can do that here.''

Time for Kulikov to shine

The recent trades of Seidenberg and fellow defender Jordan Leopold give more opportunities to Florida's young defensemen such as Dmitry Kulikov, who took 28 shifts and played 23:59, a second off his career high, in Wednesday's 7-4 victory over the Flyers.

"Every game is a championship game for me,'' said Kulikov, 19, sixth among rookies with 10 power-play points despite missing 14 games with an MCL injury.

DeBoer said no matter how much promise Kulikov has, no one is assured of a roster spot next year.

"His ice time is up and he's going to have to show he can handle that,'' DeBoer said. "He's a guy I really want to see take a step up these last [19] games'' …

Injured forward Nathan Horton, who has missed the last 12 games since breaking his leg on Jan. 21, is skating on his own, but DeBoer said he will not be available Saturday against the Hurricanes.